How Do You Decode a VIN Number?

In this era of cars everywhere and a lot of them, it is necessary to keep track of them. Plus as the world is moving towards compactness, so the use of codes is becoming quite common. Same happened with the cars in case of coding scenarios. A VIN is assigned to every car which keeps all the information in it. You can get all the data stored in the code by knowing how to decipher it. When you buy a car, you can look for a VIN and can get all the details of the car.

What exactly is a VIN Number?

If you are new to this thing, then the first question to pop in your mind is what this VIN Number is. VIN is an abbreviation for Vehicle Identification Number. As mentioned above it is a code which has a lot of information stored in it and decrypting the code can provide you loads of knowledge about your car which you might have been else unaware of. It is a 17 character code comprising of alphabets and digits. Each character has a history and has loads of information to communicate. Deciphering a VIN is something you would have to learn if you want to go for doing one. Below are the detailed procedure and knowledge which can help you in decrypting the code.

Decoding a VIN Number

Every vehicle has a different VIN code typically having 17 characters. This combination of digits and alphabets is divided into several categories, and each category has a different story to share. To be able to decrypt a code, you must first understand the structure of the VIN.

The Structure of Vehicle ID

It must be noted that the vehicles manufactured before 1981 might have a different scheme and consist of less character as compared to the new scheme which is an ISO standard and has 17 characters. The 17 character is code is divided in this way.

Character 1 – 3: The first three digits are referred to as WMI. WMI stands for World Manufacturer Identifier. These characters are responsible for identifying the manufacturer of the vehicle and provides information on that topic.

Character 4 – 8: The second part which comprises of 5 characters is known as VDS which means Vehicle Descriptors Section. This part is responsible for providing information about the vehicle. It consists of the vehicle model number, transmission, engine, etc.

Character 9 – 17: The third and the last is the most elongated part of the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), and it is called VIS which is an abbreviation for Vehicle Identifier Section. This section specifies the vehicle like which year the vehicle was manufactured, identifies the plant the particular vehicle was assembled in and the serial number of that vehicle.

A VIN can provide you much information which is divided into the categories discussed above. The details which you can get by decoding the VIN code include the location of the manufacturing, manufacturers, model, engine size, etc.

Vehicle Identification Number Decoder (VIN Decoder):

You can always use a VIN Decoder to decode the number. This VIN Decoder is capable of providing you the information related to the following topics:

The details about the ownership history of the vehicle.
A technical checklist to inform you about the possible problems and issues of the vehicle.
A sale history which displays the financial record
A detailed accident history with the specified dates and the damages suffered.
Recall account which displays if the vehicle had any existing or pending recalls.

Conclusion

While buying a new vehicle, it is an intelligent decision to decode the Vehicle Identification Number and get all the details of that car. It will help you in making a better decision for yourself. All of the information provided above would help you in understanding the code, what it is and what information it is communicating. It is also suggested to decode the code from a trustable platform which can provide you a lot of additional information as mentioned above.